Today in Blazer History 4 For 40 - Celebrating 40 Years of UAB Basketball. Episode 2

4 for 40 –
Today we look at the top 4 scorers of the second decade from 1988-1998.

UAB’s second decade was not as strong as the first decade. In the first 10 years, UAB won 210 games, the most of any decade. During the second decade, that total dropped to 194. UAB had their greatest success early in the decade, but by the mid 1990’s, as Gene Bartow’s career was winding down, the success was starting to decline as well. The end of the decade ended with UAB fans adjusting with to life without Gene Bartow on the bench. Here are the top 4 scorers of UAB’s second decade.

Top Scorers from the Second decade 1988-1998

1. Andy Kennedy (1988-1991)
Andy Kennedy played his freshman year at North Carolina State under Jim Valvano, but decided to transfer to UAB. Unfortunately, the summer before he was to start playing, he suffered a knee injury which caused him to have to play with a heavy brace for part of his UAB career. Had it not been for that brace, Andy Kennedy might have been UAB’s all-time leading scorer. He still managed to score 1787 points in three years, good for second on the all-time scorers list. During his senior year, he scored 676 points, which is second most in a season. Kennedy is tied with Robert Vaden for the record for most points scored in a game. He scored 41 points against Saint Louis in January 1991. He also holds the record for highest scoring average in a season, 21.8 points per game during his senior year. Kennedy is also UAB’s best ever free throw shooter, hitting 87.2% of his shots in his career, including a record 16 of 18 free throws in one game. He was 2nd Team All Sun Belt in his junior year and 1st Team All Sun Belt at the end of his senior year. After leaving UAB, Kennedy played overseas, but then got into coaching. He was an assistant coach at UAB from 1995-2001 before going to Cincinnati. He has been a head coach at Cincinnati and spent 12 years at Ole Miss, becoming their all-time winningest coach. He stepped down in 2018 and is currently not coaching.

2. Elbert Rogers (1988-1992)
Elbert Rogers, from Pascagoula Mississippi played from 1988 to 1992. In his four years at UAB, he scored 1587 points, making him the 4th highest scorer all time. Yet, he is rarely mentioned as one of UAB’s best players ever. He was a dominant power forward who provided a strong inside presence to offset scoring threats from players such as Andy Kennedy and Stanley Jackson. He played mainly off the bench during his first two years, but in his junior year, he averaged 17 points a game and scored in double figures in 27 of his 31 games. He averaged over 20 points in his last 10 games and at the end of the season he was named 2nd team All Sun Belt. His senior year was UAB’s first year in the Great Midwest Conference. He was the sole senior and UAB’s go to guy. In the very first game, he scored 34 points, including 26 second half points against Duquesne. In the two games of the Cable Car Classic that year, he scored 51 points 13 rebounds and was 17 of 19 from the free throw line, earning him MVP honors. In Conference play, he led the Great Midwest in scoring, a conference that was rated the fourth best conference in the country in its first season. He was named 1st team All Great Midwest, but lost out on the MVP honors to Penny Hardaway. After UAB, he played overseas until 2002 when he returned to Birmingham to be a police officer.

3. Stanley Jackson (1989-1993)
Even though Stanley Jackson was only 6’3, he was one of the biggest players ever to play for UAB. He had great basketball instincts and amazing leaping abilities and a strong work ethic. Stamp Jackson came to UAB from Valley, Alabama. In his first home game, he scored 8 points and a team high 12 rebounds. It was apparent from the start that Jackson was going to be a great rebounder. His play earned him a spot on the All Freshman team in the Sun Belt Conference. Jackson almost had a triple double in his second game of his sophomore year. He had 10 points, 9 assists and 12 rebounds against Lamar. Despite his height, he was the second leading rebounder on the team that year. He was second team All-Great Midwest during his junior year. During his senior year, Stanley Jackson was the leading scorer. Against South Carolina in the Hall of Fame Classic, he scored a career high in scoring with 32 points and also broke Steve Mitchell’s record for most steals in a career. For the second straight year, Jackson was named 2nd team All-Great Midwest. Jackson led the team to an NIT bid at the end of the season. He stole an inbounds pass at the end of the Alabama game and hit two crucial free throws that led UAB to a win over the Tide. That Blazer team went all the way to the NIT Final Four. Stanley Jackson finished his career with 1491 points, #7 on the list of top scorers. He is #1 all time in steals. After UAB, Jackson played in Europe and in the CBA. He retired from basketball at the age of 35 in 2006. In 2007, he accepted a job with the Minnesota Timberwolves as Client Development Representative, a position he held until 2016.

4. Carlos Williams (1994-1997)
Carlos Williams scored the fourth most points for UAB during the second decade. In only 3 years, he scored 1486 points, which is #8 on the All Time Scorers. Like Andy Kennedy, an injury kept him from being higher on the list. Williams was a huge recruit for UAB. His high school in Detroit Michigan won two state championships and went 52-2 his last two years of high school. He finished 3rd for the Mr. Basketball award, signifying the best player in Michigan. Unfortunately, he was unable to play his freshman year at UAB due to academic ineligibility. His sophomore year started great. He scored in double figures his first 12 games, four of which were double-doubles. His season came to an abrupt halt right before conference season was to begin when he landed wrong after a dunk and injured both knees. Williams finally got a full season in for his junior year. He led UAB in 18 of 30 games and scored over 30 points on four occasions. He averaged 20.2 points a game and was the leading scorer in UAB’s new conference, CUSA. He was the leading rebounder in the conference during his senior year. He was named first team All CUSA for his junior and senior year, but both years, he lost out on Player of the Year to Cincinnati’s Danny Fortson. After UAB, Williams played in the CBA and in Korea. In August 2002, while visiting his hometown of Detroit, he was staying with friends before heading back to Korea. He reportedly answered the door late at night and in a case of mistaken identity, he was beaten and fatally shot. The murder was ruled drug-related, even though Williams had never been known to be involved with narcotics. The murder remains unsolved. Carlos Williams was beloved by everyone who ever came across him. For several years, UAB awarded the Carlos Williams Memorial Award to the player who best exemplified the best attitude and dedication to the Blazer Program. He is one of the greatest players to ever wear a UAB uniform.